Learning to Live in the Wizarding World
by Girl of the stars
Summary: Lily meets Arthur Weasley, who introduces her to the wizarding world...after he is surprised by her receiving a Hogwarts letter in some strange circumstances...
1. Welcome to the Wizarding World

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters or events you may recognize from the Harry Potter books and movies. The rest, however, is MINE! MINE! ALL MINE! Mua ha ha (evil laugh)…

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**Chapter 1: Welcome to the Wizarding World**

Hello. My name is Lily Evans. My hand is shaking with excitement as I write this story, because I'm graduating from Hogwarts tomorrow. I'm so thrilled and frightened at the same time! And sad as well…this school has brought so many wonderful things into my life…but you might not know anything about Hogwarts! I apologize for not thinking of this before! I'd best explain.

I am a witch. No, I don't have a long nose with a wart on it, and though I _do_ ride a broom, I'm not at all like you would think a witch would be. I _do_ practice magic, of course, but I only know any because of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, my home for these past seven years. I'll be telling you about those seven years, but so much happened that I couldn't sum it up in one section. Also, I can't do it alone, so I have a few people helping me to write this history: James Potter, Sirius Black, and Heather (also known as Kyra) Nielson. I'm now turning the time over to them for a while, so prepare to hear (or rather, read) some strange things.

_Hello! I am the dashing, talented, brilliant, athletic, irresistible James Potter! Please contain yourself-I know it's exciting._

James, shut up and get on with the story.

_Fine, fine, Lily dearest. No need to be rude. I was just introducing myself. Anyways, hello and welcome to the wizarding world. Just to warn you, this story won't always be a fairy tale, especially since it concerns Lily's and all of our lives. It contains horrifying beasts, like dragons, dementors, and Malfoy; creepy freaks-for example, blast-ended skrewts and Snape; and evil, dark creatures, such as Malfoy and Snape._

_**I have a strong feeling you don't like those two.**_

_As always, Sirius, you are absolutely correct. And if I'm not wrong, you despise them as well. _

_**Do I have reason not to?**_

I'm sorry to interrupt, lovebirds, but you are being very immature and getting off subject!

So very sorry, Lily-flower! I apologize from the bottom of my enormous, loving heart.

Touching, Sirius-I can tell it's so sincere…why do you call me that?

_**Call you what? Lily-flower?**_

Yes, Lily-flower.

Well, Lily is both your name and the name of a flower. Oh, and you're as pretty as any flower I've seen. Put it all together and what do you get? Lily-flower!

Flattering…well, all right. Whatever you say, Siri.

Siri? Oh, good times, good times.

**Speaking of those "good times," let's get back to Lily's life story, shall we?**

_Oh! Hello Kyra! How lovely of you to join us!_

Yeah, yeah. Am I actually going to have to be the one to make us get something done?

I suppose. Do you want to begin?

Someone should.

Then lead the way.

Okay. Phase one: Lily was born to loving parents on July 27- 

What do _you_ know about my birth? You know what, my dear, dear friends? I think I'll start and let you three come in later, okay?

_Great!_

_**Fantabulous! **_

…Fine.

Finally. I suppose I'd better start at the best place-the beginning!

When I was born on July 27, as dear Kyra mentioned above, almost sixteen years ago, no one around me had a clue that I was a witch. My parents thought I was the sweetest ickle baby in the wide world, but to my two-year-old sister, Petunia, I was just an attention thief. That opinion of me stayed with her. I truly believe that she loathed me even before I was born. For as long as I can remember, my sister spoke only insults to me, and her looks were filled with venom.

I didn't have what you'd call a normal childhood, simple and carefree like other kids', where a skinned knee was a tragedy and a big deal. You see, I only skinned a knee once, and it healed miraculously before I even had a chance to cry. That was one of the first strange incidents I remember, but there were other things.

When I was seven, Petunia had taken my favorite stuffed animal. My eyes were gushing with so many tears that I could barely see. However, I stared at that hair that I hated because I couldn't look her in the face when she taunted me. Before I had any idea what was happening, my sister was screaming for water and running for my mum, her hair leaving a trail of smoke behind her. I recall gazing after her in astonishment, and slowly picking up my precious stuffed cat, Kitty (I wasn't very creative with names), hugging it close to me.

One thing you have to know to understand my life is I was very loved by my parents. They loved Petunia, too, but she couldn't see it. Maybe that's why she disliked me so much. There were times when I could've sworn there was a flicker of true blue love in those eyes of hers, but then the moment would quickly fade. It saddened me more than she would ever know.

I wasn't fond of her, for obvious reasons, but I did _try_ to be relatively civil-most of the time, anyway. I think her personality had a negative influence what could've been an attractive appearance. Petunia had blonde hair that hid her horse-like face with, and beady blue eyes that glared at me constantly even before she found out what-no, not what- _who_ I was. That day is still ripe in my mind, as clear as if it had been yesterday.

It was a bright sunny day, not long before my eleventh birthday, and playing outside with some of my neighborhood friends. Both my parents were at work (my dad was a dentist, Mum a part-time editor for a local newspaper), and Petunia was out with some of her sullen friends. We were running in the street (not very bright, I know), when suddenly a car turned roughly around the corner. We jerked around in fright, and fled towards the sidewalk. Unfortunately, I was at the back of our little crowd and didn't make it. All I remember is the deafening screech of tires before my world went black.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. and Mrs. Evans. I'm not used to driving…carms. Here, let me take her. I can take care of her. I can take her to a place where she can be healed. But only if you hurry." The words vaguely processed in my head. This was the maniac that must have hit me! I tried to sit up but found that I couldn't even open my eyes. I heard Mum crying slightly above sirens, and then the man's voice again. "Please, I beg of you! Your Muggle hospitals won't be any good for the girl!"

"All right. All right," Dad said quietly, "but take us. Take us please."

The man hesitated. "I'll have her transferred as soon as I can-to one of your Muggle hospitals. Trust me."

"Hurry, for goodness' sake! I don't know why I _do_ trust you with this, but I do, so hurry! And be more careful with her than you've been with anything in your entire life-especially your driving!" Dad's voice faded as I felt myself being picked up. I gasped in pain.

"Hold on! Hold on!" The man whispered urgently as consciousness left me again.

I woke up the next day, nearly surrounded by white curtains. "Where-where am I? What am I doing here?" I asked a bent-over man, his head in his hands, and seated on a chair by the bed I was laying in.

He looked up and sighed with relief when he saw me. "I'll be right back," he said before walking off. I watched him leave, and took a second first impression of him, where I actually got to see him clearly. He was a tall man, but younger than I'd thought before. He couldn't have been more than five or ten years older than I was! He had bright red hair and freckles that stood out, but I liked his appearance. He seemed nice-even if he had crashed into me.

He returned a few minutes later, followed by a young woman in a white coat. "Well, let's see what we have here, Arthur," the woman said with a smile, and leaned towards me. She checked my pulse, checked my temperature, and nodded at the young man who had run me down. "You can take her as soon as you want to-but I suggest you don't take Muggle transportation." There was a hint of amusement in her voice. I looked at her with raised eyebrows.

"What-" I started to ask, when they both headed towards the door.

"I'm just going to fill out some papers. I won't be a moment." They closed the door behind them.

I huffed in frustration. What was going on? Who were these people, where was I, and what in the world were _Muggles_?

I suddenly felt very tired. I closed my eyes and surrendered to sleep. I was surrounded by pillows in a comfortable chair in the lobby of the hospital nearest to my home-I recognized it from when Petunia mysteriously sprouted horns on her fingers when she'd cut my hair in my sleep. I looked around and saw the redheaded teenage boy talking to the receptionist. "I've brought Lily Evans," he said, "Someone should have called ahead on the phelly-tone…"

"On the _telephone_, young sir?"

He flushed with embarrassment and nodded. I watched this whole encounter with curiosity. What was going on? This man didn't even know how to say telephone! Something was definitely strange.

When he came over to me, I asked, "Who in the world are you? What am I doing here?"

He looked a bit uncomfortable with my questions, and didn't answer them. He just smiled briefly and looked away, apparently fascinated with everything around him-particularly with the electric lighting. "Amazing…absolutely mind-baffling…" he kept muttering to himself as he inspected the electric plug a lamp was connected with.

I watched him with frustration. Why wouldn't he tell me what was going on? I fumed in silence until someone arrived with a wheelchair to escort me to my room. I moved to sit in the wheelchair, but recoiled in pain.

"Easy…" said the young man who'd run me over. "Here, let me help you." He took hold of me from under my arms, the assistant hoisting my legs. The man came with us to my room, which was small but neat and comfortably furnished, and made sure I was tucked in before he turned to leave.

"Wait!" I called after him.

With a sigh, he faced me. "I can't answer your questions. Even if I do, you wouldn't ever remember me doing so."

"Why not? I may have a banged-up head, thanks to you, but I believe I still have a good memory! I always have been able to-"

"It wouldn't be your fault. If anyone's, it'd be mine. This whole mess is." He stared at the floor, then up at me. He reached into his back pocket. "I probably should do it anyways…" He pulled out a stick, making sure no one else was around.

He began to say something, pointing the stick at me, but I interrupted him. "Stop! If you're going to do that anyways, why don't you answer my questions first?"

He looked thoughtful. "All right, then," he said, pocketing the stick and sitting down next to my bed. "It'll be a weight off my chest. Prepare yourself to hear some unbelievable things, though." And he dived into an explanation. He told me he was a wizard and had bought a car from an unsuspecting Muggle, their term for a non-magic person. He had tried to drive it, but it obviously hadn't worked out so well. He had taken me to St. Mungo's, a wizarding hospital, and then to here. I'd ask a question here or there, but I mostly let him explain about his world. In the middle of the conversation, I asked if it wouldn't be all right if I could have a bit of fresh air. He kept talking as he opened the window.

As he neared the end of his confession, I stared outside. This was amazing! So unbelievable! And yet…and yet I _did_ believe him. In fact, I had no doubt he was telling the absolute truth when a barn owl swooped through the open window.

Arthur Weasley, as he said his name was, caught the owl. "Don't bother with this," he told me, taking an envelope from its talons, "it's for me." He looked down at the letter as he began to open it. He stared at what was written on it, and glanced up at me in unbelief. "I don't believe it," he muttered, "it's for you! A Hogwarts letter, by Merlin!" He held it out to me, and I snatched it in excitement.

For me? Lily Evans? A Muggle? What were wizarding folk writing to me for? For of course only peculiar people like witches and wizards would post by owl. I read the address: "Miss Lily Evans, London Hospital, fifth floor." I opened it and read aloud the first line of the letter written in emerald ink. "Dear Miss Evans, we are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry." I looked up at Arthur. "Hogwarts?"

He nodded. "My old school. What a coincidence…you being a witch! It makes this whole thing much more convenient for me, of course. Won't have to perform a memory charm-not any good at them anyways…" he stood up, muttering to himself, and paced around the room. When he stopped, he looked at me. "First thing we'll have to do, of course, is tell your parents." On cue, my parents entered the room.

My mum plunged forward, gathering me up in a tight hug. "Mum-" I choked out. "Mum, you're hurting me."

"Oh-oh that's right-I'm sorry, dear." She turned to Arthur and kissed his cheek. "Thank you so much, Mister…"

"Weasley. Arthur Weasley, Ma'am," he said. "I'm very sorry about this whole disaster, Mr. and Mrs. Evans. Like I said a week ago, I'm not used to driving…I'll leave Lily to tell you why." He smiled at me.

"He's a wizard, Mum."

My parents just smiled. "Of course he is, sweetheart," said Dad, patting my hand warmly.

"No, Dad," I protested. "I'm serious! And I'm…I'm a witch, Dad. Look." I handed him the letter from Hogwarts. He glanced at it with a twinkle in his eye that disappeared as he read it. He read it twice, and then a third time before handing it to my mother. They both had perplexed expressions on their faces.

"But surely…" Mum started, "surely this is all just a joke. Isn't it?" She looked to Arthur, as if expecting him to admit that it was all just a silly prank we were pulling. He shook his head with a puzzled expression on his face.

"If she got that letter, she's a real, true witch, Mrs. Evans." Mum fainted then and there.

On my birthday I was released from the hospital, declared perfectly fine. Arthur came to visit me and offered to take me to Diagon Alley to buy my school things. My parents reluctantly agreed on the condition that I be back by five o'clock for a birthday supper. I happily went with Arthur on public transportation ("How do you get on? You call that a button? Amazing!") to a little pub in London called the Leaky Cauldron.

"Hello, Tom!" Arthur said cheerfully to the bartender as we entered. "Mind letting us through to Diagon Alley? I can never remember which bricks to tap…" As the two talked, I looked around the room, feeling out of place. Everyone in the room was obviously a witch or wizard, and many were watching me. I turned back to Arthur, hoping that if I ignored them, they'd stop staring. Soon Tom was leading us through to an alley wall, where he tapped several bricks with his wand in what was clearly a set order.

"What-" I started to ask when the bricks began to move. They twisted and turned, folding back to form an arch. Beyond that arch was a crowded street.

"Welcome to Diagon Alley," Arthur said with a smile. He turned to the bartender. "We'll floo back-thanks." He led me into the alley, which was lined with shops.

Wide-eyed, I desperately tried to drink in everything around me. There was a wand shop, cauldron shops, and bookshops…all unique and wonderful, no matter how old they looked. More fascinating than the shops, however, were the people. Everyone around me was dressed differently; all in what Arthur said were wizarding clothes. At a store that advertised something called "Quidditch," there were a couple of boys about my age-maybe a little older-with their faces pushed up against the front window.

"The _Goldenstreak_!" one whispered in awe, "just look at the shape of that handle…it's the fastest broom yet!"

"Yeah, and you'll be getting it for Christmas, no doubt. You're so rich you could afford twenty of those, James…" another grumbled.

"Oh, come off it, Sirius. Just because my parents have the money doesn't mean they're going to spend it on _me_," James replied with a grin. "Of course, I'm not saying they _won't_ either, but…"

"Let's go somewhere else," Sirius said. "Somewhere I won't get depressed."

"How about you actually get your supplies for school?" Arthur said with amusement.

Sirius shook his head, still admiring the broomstick on display. "No good." He paused. "Wait a minute-I know that voice!" He whipped around. "Aha! It _is_ Arthur!"

Arthur held out his hand, which Sirius gripped with a drop-dead gorgeous grin, giving him a pound on the back. James did the same and said, "Good to see you, Arthur. It'll be boring without you this year."

"You'll get along all right, I'm sure," Arthur said with an amused smile.

Sirius glanced at me and away. He shook his head and immediately returned his eyes to me. "Who is _this_, Arthur?" He looked me up and down and I felt a slight blush rise in my cheeks.

"I'm Lily. Lily Evans." I held out my hand, which he shook.

"I'm Sirius Black, and this," he nudged his friend "is James Potter."

James just stared at me until I extended my hand to him. He grasped it with a smile. "How do you know Arthur, Lily?"

I almost grinned at the memory. "He ran me over a while ago. _Literally_." I glanced at Arthur, who was rubbing his neck in embarrassment, his ears bright red.

"_No way_! In a _car_?" Sirius asked. At Arthur's nod, he grinned. "Wicked!"

"Not really," I interjected. "From what he tells me, I almost _died_." Sirius' grin faded, and he tried to look sorry for me, but it was clear that he was curious.

"You can fill them in later," Arthur said, looking like he didn't want to fill them in at all. "We'd better go, Lily-we've got a lot to do and it's already noon. I promised to return you by five, remember?"

"'Return'? You make me sound like a library book!" I teased as he led me to Gringotts, the wizard bank to exchange the Muggle money I'd brought along for galleons, sickles, and knuts. He handed me the key to my new vault and warned me not to lose it. I pocketed it and promised to be careful.

"Let's go to Flourish and Blotts next," he suggested, "buy our books and some ink and parchment."

"All right, then," I said and followed his lead. "Are they first years?" I asked Arthur after we'd finished there.

"Who? Potter and Black? Nope. Second years. I spent half my year as Head Boy giving them detentions. Great guys, though. Hilarious and brilliant, the both of them. Come on, then. Got to keep going. Lots to do."

I bought a cauldron, a wand, and an owl, and before I knew it, I was back home, having used floo powder for the first time to get to Arthur's house. To my surprise, he lived only a few blocks away from me. I felt a bit foolish carrying through the neighborhood, but my owl Demeter, as I had named her, refused to be covered by the cloak Arthur was hiding my other supplies with. I thanked him when he dropped me off, and he told me to meet him at King's Cross Station on September 1, the day school started. "You'll have a bit of a problem getting to the train if you don't," he said, handing me my ticket.

With a smile, I said goodbye and went inside the house. After all my stuff was put away in my room, I came downstairs to celebrate the rest of the day with my family. I went to bed that night excited for the day only a little over a month away-a month which flew faster than had any other in my life. Before I knew it, it was September first.

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End of Chapter

PS from the real Heather: Is it all right if Heather is Heather Nielson and not Heather Nelson? 


	2. On the Hogwarts Express

Disclaimer: I don't own any characters or events you may recognize from the Harry Potter books and movies. The rest, however, is MINE! MINE! ALL MINE! Mua ha ha (evil laugh)…

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**Chapter 2: On the Hogwarts Express**

_ I met Sirius at King's Cross Station at about quarter to eleven. "Hello, mate," he said, giving me a pound on the back. Looking behind me, a mischievous grin spread on his face. "Look who's here," he whispered to me. I turned around to see three redheads, a man, and a blonde girl walking toward us. One of the redheads was Arthur, one I did not know, and the third was the girl we'd met in Diagon Alley: Lily Evans. I had to admit it to myself-I liked this girl. I smiled broadly in spite of myself when they approached us._

_"Hello, boys," Arthur said. "You remember Lily, don't you?" He gestured toward her._

_"How could we forget her?" Sirius said, natural charm kicking in full blast. Lily blushed a bit and smiled shyly. I scowled at my best friend._

_"Nice to see you again," I said._

_"You, too," she replied, meeting my gaze and blushing even more._

_ That was better. Sirius always got the girls' attention. Okay, not all of it, but he always caught it first. I'm not saying I'm jealous, but this was one girl who, for some reason, I definitely wanted to look at me instead of him._

_"Well, let's get onto the platform, shall we?" Arthur suggested._

_"Right-o. Swell idea, Arthur. I should have thought of it myself," Sirius said. We all rolled our eyes, but didn't say anything. The blonde girl, whom I assumed was Lily's sister, stared at him as if he were a lunatic. When her gaze landed on me, it was so cold I had to restrain a shiver._

_"Lily, say goodbye to your family now. They won't be able to get onto the platform," Arthur said kindly. We watched as Lily received a kiss on the cheek from both her parents, and a stiff goodbye from her sister. Our new redhead friend looked close to tears as she looked back at her parents one last time before coming with us, and I had to feel for her. She was stepping into a world she knew hardly anything about, after all. However, she didn't say anything as she watched Sirius race through the barrier between platforms nine and ten._

_"Just run through there like Sirius did, you can walk, if you like, and you'll be on platform 9 ¾," I told her. Arthur and I watched patiently as she nodded, took a deep breath, and pushed her trolley through to the platform. After she disappeared, Arthur and I followed._

The morning had been quite rushed. Petunia had refused to even get up for nearly an hour, and though I told my parents that if she didn't want to come to see me off, she didn't have to. They just shook their heads, saying that she was my sister and she was going to come to the train station with us. And that was that. Petunia finally got ready, complaining the whole time while Mum and I were frantically running around, repeatedly reviewing my list of things to pack to see if I'd forgotten anything. When we had everything ready at last, we had a bit of trouble getting my trunk into the back of our car. Eventually Petunia was sandwiched in front with my parents while I sat next to my trunk, finishing Hogwarts, A History for the second time. I didn't want to be the most ignorant person at the school, after all.

We finally reached King's Cross-at about ten-forty, where we met up with Arthur Weasley. We saw James Potter and Sirius Black there, as James said above, and after friendly greetings and such, they showed me how to get to the train. I had a hard time leaving my parents, but I held a forced smile and walked on through the barrier. Since that step, my life has never been the same.

The ride to Hogwarts on the scarlet Hogwarts Express was very eventful. I shared a compartment with James and Sirius, since they were the only people I knew at all. Also with us were two of their friends: Remus Lupin and Abigail Coote. I liked Remus almost immediately, with his friendly, yet quiet personality, but Abigail didn't even smile when we met…we've never gotten along well. I was introduced to several more things, such as Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans, dung bombs, and Severus Snape. I'll let Sirius tell you about these.

**_Hello again, my friends! I get the wonderful opportunity to tell you about our train ride to school. Prepare yourself for a jolly good time!_**

**_As Lily already said, we (being Lily, James, and myself) shared a compartment with our friends Remus and Abigail. Remus was life-long friend to both James and I, and we met Abigail, a fellow Gryffindor, in our first year. Abigail was very pretty, to put it lightly. With silky blonde hair and striking blue eyes surrounded by thick, dark lashes, she couldn't help making most of the boys in the school drool whenever they saw her. She was a lot like Lily in that respect._**

Why, thank you, Sirius. You're too kind.

**_I only speak the truth. Anyways, from the beginning Lily and Abigail were rather cold towards one another. They pretended to not hate each other so everyone else could have a good time. Not long after the train left the station, we decided to play a game we marauders invented to amuse ourselves when we didn't feel like breaking anything. It was very simple: we would put one of each kind of treat we got from the trolley on the train into a bag and mix them up. Then we would each in turn take one out. The lucky person who removed a bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans would then have to pick a bean without looking. If they could eat it, including swallowing, they would get all the delectable items that were in the original bag. It was rare and fortunate to get a nice-tasting jellybean. Far more common was to get a flavor such as grass, vomit, or earwax. _**

**_In the first round, Lily got the bag of Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans. She looked positively sick when we told her the kind of flavors she might pick. It took a lot of persuading to convince her to just stick her hand in and grab one. When she finally did, in her hand was a light pink, almost white bean. James and I looked at each other with grins as we guessed the likely flavor: sardines. Fortunately, Lily did not see our devilish faces, and hesitantly put the bean in her mouth. In seconds, a look of absolute repulsion spread across her face. Soon she couldn't handle it any longer. She couldn't force herself to swallow the vile thing, so she did something desperate: she turned her head and spit it out._**

**_Now, that would be a good story on its own, but there is more. You see, just as it flew from her mouth across the compartment, the door opened-and who should come in but Severus Snape! Oh ho! Unluckily for him, his hawk nose was right where the bean was headed. It hit him dead on, and hit him hard, sticking to his face. There was a shocked silence for an instant before all of us burst in to laughter-everyone except Lily. Our new friend was positively white, with her hands clamped tightly over her mouth and her eyes wide with horror as she looked at our fuming enemy. _**

_**Wiping his face, Snivellus (our fond nickname for him) looked-no, ****glared**** at each of us in turn. We tried to hold back our laughter at his expression. "Who," he whispered dangerously, "did that?" We almost burst into laughter again, but avoided looking at one another and managed to keep exceptionally quiet-all of us but Lily. She must have a powerful conscience, because she always fesses up when she's done something wrong. It was no different in this situation. She managed to pry her hands off her face and say quietly to her victim, "It was an accident-I'm sorry…"**_

_"**You are going to be," he replied with a sneer, taking his wand from his pocket. As soon as we saw it, our wands were out as well. James, Remus, and I were on our feet, while Abigail was lying back lazily and Lily froze in her seat. I guess it was her first time being threatened by a wizard. **_

Actually, it was. I guess it is surprising, though because I'd only known wizards even existed for how long?

_**All right, you've made your point. So, of course, it was her first time being assaulted by a magical person-****to her knowledge**_

I'm going to be mature and not comment on that last part.

**_You ruin all the fun in life. Well, on with the story. Snape, that slimy coward of a serpent he is, merely sneered, pocketed his wand, and said to Lily, "You're lucky-this time." And he turned to leave-or so we thought. He took a step out of the compartment, turned again, drew something out of his pocket, threw it, and ran down the hall. _**

_"**Well that was-" James was interrupted by an explosion and a sudden horrid smell. Almost immediately all our shirts were over our noses. "He dropped a dungbomb, that snake!" James muttered. **_

_"**Honestly, boys, are you wizards or aren't you?" Lily scoffed. Before we knew it, the smell was gone, being replaced by the pleasant smell of chocolate.**_

**_Remus, always the polite one, thanked Lily, but Abigail, James and I just looked at each other, surprise evident in all our eyes. This was not normal-far from it. It was usually at least a couple days before any first year could get any result from any simple spell, and this one, the air purifier (invented by Dumbledore, our headmaster) was far from simple compared to most she would be learning. In other words, it was very impressive for a Muggle-born first year to be able to do it well. James shrugged it off and we continued playing our game-all of us but Lily. She chose to curl up in a seat by the window with a book. Eventually, we grew bored of the game and attacked our spoils. I'm going to hand the quill over to James, who was the only one to win nothing in our game_.**

_The rest of the trip passed rather quietly, with me looking over Lily's shoulder as she read, Remus and Abigail engaged in a game of wizard's chess, and Sirius laying on the floor, transforming our candy wrappers into random objects (most of which I didn't recognize). We changed into our school robes after a while, and got ready to leave the train. Lily was visibly nervous, biting her fingernails and asking us frantically what she would have to do to get into a good house, not listening to our answers. Finally, I took her by the shoulders, shook her a little, and looked straight into her face. "Lily," I said, "Calm down. Breathe. In. Out. In. Out." She nodded her head and took my advice. After a few deep breathes, she smiled. "Thanks, James."_

_"Sure. I was nervous my first year, too."_

_"Don't worry, Lily-flower," Sirius broke in, "it doesn't hurt too much."_

_"What?" she said, terrified._

_"Leave off, Sirius," I said and turned to Lily. "Don't pay attention to him. He's a dork. It's easy. Anyone can do it. Honest."_

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